


A Needed Change

by Albrix the Weremoose (Albrix_the_Weremoose259)



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-11
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:07:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21758800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Albrix_the_Weremoose259/pseuds/Albrix%20the%20Weremoose
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

A needed change  
Routine

Terrible screams filled the air as Jason looked about looking for the source. The Amur Tiger dashed from one door to another in the small hallway before coming to a blood red door. Grabbed the small knob and the screaming stopped. He hesitated for a moment, gathering his courage. Now ready he turned the knob and opened the door. Before him laid the yard in which he grew up in but strangely different. The sky was a dark red and a shadowed figure stood before his father while his mother and siblings watched. His father and the two figures were arguing but for some reason Jason couldn’t make out what they were saying. The argument grew louder until it hit a crescendo and with one swift motion the shadowed figure reared back and smacked his father across the face. The older tiger fell to the ground, a crumpled heap as his siblings and mother ran over. Jason roared anger and rage at the shade as it turned on him. Jason hunched down and bared his claws and fangs ready for battle. the shade mimicked him as it ran towards him. Jason was running now and just as the two collided the shadow figure absorbed into Jason.

The alarm clock buzzed loudly in his ear and woke Jason with a start. The red light that illuminated the screen irritated his eyes as he looked over at his alarm clock. Jason reached out with his massive right paw and pushed the snooze button effectively silencing it for at least another ten to fifteen minutes. Five thirty is what the red numbers would display, he didn’t even have to look at the clock to know that. It had been his normal wake up time for the last two years of his life after all. Jason wiped his face with his paw then swung his legs off of the bed and stood up. Reaching down and turning the alarms buzzer to off as he walked toward the dark bathroom.  
Upon entering he turned on the light and was momentarily blinded as his eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness. After a moment his vision cleared and he stepped to the toilet to relieve himself before he climbed into the shower. It only took him a few minutes to clean his orange and black fur but he stayed in several minutes longer allowing the hot water to run down his back. He reveled in the feeling and sorely wished that he could stay here all day instead of going to work, but he had to support himself and it had been the only job that he had been able to get in the last couple years. So he begrudgingly turned the water off and exited the shower.  
The room was covered in steam and felt humid due to him using nothing but hot water. As he stepped in front of the mirror he wiped the steam from it to reveal his face. It was strong and defined with tufts of fur sticking out on the sides of his cheeks. His eye’s were a fierce blue. Being in his early twenties his features were sharp and well defined. There was one scar though that ran over his right eye and down onto his right cheek and the the three across the bridge of his nose. They had been caused a year ago after he had gotten into a fight with another predator. Jason stared at himself in the mirror for a few moments then grabbed his toothbrush which seemed small in his hands.  
As he brushed his teeth he got the feeling for some music but restrained himself from playing any since it would wake the neighbors which he didn’t wish to do mostly because they would get louder than the music. After drying and brushing his teeth he grabbed his uniform and put it on. His large form looked unkempt in the uniform and it was something that caused him to hate it. After getting dressed he grabbed his phone and earbuds then his lunch from the fridge and left the apartment. As he locked the door and turned to leave he saw a small bunny come from the communal shower with a towel wrapped around her.  
The bunny’s ears swiveled around when she heard his heavy footsteps. “Oh, good morning.” She said happily.  
“Good morning.” Jason replied not thinking much of it. As he passed by her she spoke up again. “It’s Jason right?”  
“Huh?” He said as he stopped and turned to look at her.  
“Hi. I’m Judy.” The small bunny told him as she extended her paw. “Judy Hopps. I work for the ZPD.”  
“Oh.” Well this was a different start to his morning. Normally he was the only one in the hallway when he left for work. ‘It must have been that extra time I spent in the shower.’ He thought to himself. Jason bent down and took her paw and shook it as he said. “Pleasure to meet you Judy.”  
He stood up straight but still kept his blue eye’s on her “My name is Jason Strongclaw.”  
“Well it’s nice to meet you Jason.” Judy said. “I hope that i didn’t take to long in the communal shower so that you had to skip out.”  
“No ma’am you didn’t.” Jason answered. “I have a shower in my apartment. I think i’m the only one that does other than the super.” He told her. He watched her face contort in a small fit of anger and then return to normal. “Well that’s not fair. I wish i had one in mine.”  
“Oh sorry if i made you angry there. If it helps any I built it myself not long after i moved in. There was room for it and the super said that she didn’t mind as long as i did the work. I did use that one there.” Jason pointed “But it was too small for me.” He said with a bit of a chuckle.  
“Oh, well i can see that.” Judy answered. Just then a door near them opened and with it came a voice. “Hey carrot’s how long are you gonna..” Said a fox that froze mid sentence as soon as he saw the big tiger standing in front of the door.  
The fox looked him up and then down then turned his head to the right to find Judy standing in the hallway wrapped in a towel talking to a massive tiger. Judy gave a smile and then a wave which seemed to have brought the fox back to reality. “So tell me big guy. What have you been eating because I need to change my diet.” The fox said as he leaned against the door frame.  
“Now Nick.” Judy said. “If you get any bigger then i don’t think that you will fit through my door.” She continued with a wink towards Nick. The fox just laughed. “Sorry Jason this is Nicholas Wilde. He’s my partner in the ZPD and kind of my boyfriend.” Jason bent down to shake Nicks paw. “Nick this is Jason Strongclaw. He works in, wait where do you work?” Judy asked.  
“I work in sanitation as a garbage collector.” Jason responded. Judy now moved closer to Nick and was standing in the doorway.  
“Oh that’s a good paying job i would bet.” Nick said  
“Yeah, it pays the bills.” Jason answered somberly.  
“Uh oh carrots, looks like someone doesn’t like his job.” Nick teased until he got an elbow to the ribs. “Nick leave him alone.” Judy told him. “I’m sure he loves his job. Don’t you Jason.”  
‘Huh?, yeah sure do.” He lied and put on a fake smile.  
“See Nick. I told you.” Judy told him to which he just shrugged.  
Jason pulled out his phone and looked at the time. It showed a half past six. He needed to get going. “Judy, Nick. It was very nice to meet you but i have to go. I really don’t like being late for work.”  
“ Hey we understand big guy.” Nick said. “Maybe we will see ya out here again.” Nick added.  
“Bye.” Judy told him as she waved. “Have a nice day at work.”  
The comment caught him a little off Guard as he walked away, as that was the first time someone had wished him that since coming to the city. “I will try.” He called back and gave a wave over his shoulder. As he exited the apartment building he pulled out his earbuds and placed them in his ears then plugged them into his phone. He searched through the metal he had stored on the phone and settled on some Black sable. As the music began to play he started his walk to work. Thinking on his encounter with the two ZPD officers and how easily that Nick guy was able to read him. It unsettled him that his disdain for his job could be read that easily by someone. Well anyhow it didn’t matter he thought to himself, he had to get to work and even though he was not to crazy about it he still didn’t like to be late.


	2. Chapter 2

Zootopia: A needed change  
Chapter two

Jason had arrived on time but just barely. He had greeted his co-workers and the driver of the garbage truck which was a beaver named Bob. He and Bob had headed out not long after clocking in to begin their route. As the day trundled on Jason couldn't get what the Fox had said out of his head. Someone that he didn't even know was able to see that he clearly didn't like his job even though he did his best to hide it. 'It must be true.' He thought to himself. 'If you’re not happy then it will show one way or another.' 

He knew that he needed to do something to get his life back on track but was unsure of what that something was. As he held onto the back of the garbage truck he watched the city pass him by. Ah zootopia. The place where you can be anything you wanted and a garbage collector wasn't something that he wanted to be at least not anymore. Jason bounced along on the back as it came to another stop. Almost absentmindedly he jumped down from the truck and grabbed the metal garbage can that was nearly overrun with trash. He lifted it up and dumped it in the back of the truck as the beaver driver watched him in the rearview mirror. As Jason sat the trash can down to pick up another he heard a loud scream followed by many maniacal laughter. 

Jason put the trash can down and peeked around the corner. As he did he saw a figure fly to the opposite end of the alleyway as if it had been thrown by two towering wildebeest. As the other creature hit the wall it let out a wail that told him it was another cat and that it was in trouble. 

Not wasting another moment watching he began moving towards the three animals. As he did one of the wildebeest bent down and grabbed the other cat and lifted it into the air. He could hear it saying “I said apologize.” It huffed. It then punched what Jason recognized as a black leopard now even though its back was to him in its stomach. Jason was close now and the wildebeest that was holding the leopard could see it. But it was too late for Jason had already lowered himself and pounced and in a matter of seconds he had cleared the last forty feet in a single bound. Tackling the wildebeest and causing him to drop the leopard. As the second wildebeest realized what had happened and begun to react Jason had spun around to face him and grabbed the black leopard and placed it behind him in a protective manner. The second wildebeest backed up a few steps and was going to ram him with his sharp horns as was the first who now gotten up. But Jason who was still crouched stood to his full height while grabbing his work shirt and ripping it off. 

The Two wildebeest were slightly confused and before they could retaliate Jason extended his claws and let loose a mighty roar that bared his fangs and displayed a murderous glint in his fierce blue eyes. For just a moment every sound was overridden, even the city seemed to have gone silent. Nothing could be heard save for his roar. The wildebeest clearly shaken backed away slowly at first then turned and ran as fast as their hooves could carry them. Which when it seemed that a tiger that had seemingly gone savage was threatening you was the appropriate response. 

Jason watched as the two cowards run away sorely hoping that they would turn around come back to fight him. His display had done its job though and that was what had mattered now the problem was pushing the savage part of his mind back and that usually didn't happen quickly. Also he had torn his uniform to shreds which agitated him even more. As the two made it around the opposite corner of the alley he let out another roar but this one was not as loud and ended in a huffing manner as he felt a paw touch his arm. He spun around to see the black leopard lying on the ground. 

Jason bent down as the leopard spoke. “Thank you.” It then tried to reach up and touch his cheek but its hand fell back down. Jason could smell something metallic and it bothered him. Realizing what it was he looked at the leopard’s clothes and could see a dark discoloration. To his surprise it was bleeding. No she was bleeding. With his senses coming back to him he picked the black leopard up and began running back to the garbage truck. Bob had gotten out and was still a little dumbstruck from watching the tiger scare off the two wildebeest. “Bob!” Jason shouted as he ran. “Get in the truck. She's hurt and needs a vet!” 

Hearing his name seemed to have brought him back to reality as he began running back to the truck as well. “Ah geez, Jason where's your shirt?”   
As they both reached the truck Jason yelled “Don't worry about the damn shirt! This girl is going to die if we don't go. Now drive!”   
With both now in the cab the beaver gunned the engine and made way for the nearest hospital. Jason kept his eyes on the leopard as the beaver weaved the big vehicle through traffic cursing at others when they didn't move quickly enough. She was beautiful. Her fur had a shiny sheen to it. Her face seemed to be soft yet there was a small scar down the right side of her muzzle. She had tufts of white on her ears with a two small loops piercing the right ear. Her shoulders were strong and her body was lean with wide hips. As he looking her over she regained consciences.   
Her eyes killed him inside. They were the most beautiful shade of emerald he had ever seen. Her strong eyes locked with his fierce blues and he was lost in them for what felt like a long time. In that time the savage beast that lived within him quieted. Feeling odd he shook the feeling away long enough to ask her what her name was. The leopard moved her lips but the noise was too great and he did not hear it. Disheartened he tried to ask again but the leopard had passed out once more. “Hang on.” He heard the beaver yell but Jason was still lost on the leopard's face. He didn't notice anything of the outside world until the garbage truck had come to a stop outside of a hospital. He quickly opened the door and carefully climbed down. He then rushed inside and began calling for help. Two nurses ran over and grabbed the leopard from him while a third brought over a gurney. The Two laid the leopard down on it and began to check her. Seeing the wound that had caused quite a bit of blood loss they began to push the gurney into an operating room as a vet came running from down an adjacent hallway. It seemed as everything was in slow motion. Jason looked down at his paws and arms shocked at how much blood was on them. 

He stood in the E.R lobby studying his paws shirtless and had it not been for the receptionist grabbing his arm around his bicep he would have remained there for who knows how long. “Excuse me sir.”   
Jason snapped his fierce blues on her that it must have startled her because she jumped a bit. “I have some questions that I need you to answer and a form for you to fill out please.” The antelope told him.   
“I'm not related to her.” He told her.   
“That's ok sir. Is she a girlfriend, or your wife maybe?” she asked.  
“No. She was being attacked by two wildebeest and I jumped in and stopped them.” Jason paused and looked at his paws again. Then back at the antelope. “I don't know who she is.”   
This seemed to bother the antelope some. As if she was annoyed that now she had to do some more paperwork. “Where can I wash up?” he asked her.   
Just down the hall there. She pointed “But I need some informant.” She began but then fell silent as he walked away towards the bathroom she had pointed out. Hoping that the beautiful leopard’s blood would come out of his fur.


	3. Chapter 3

Zootopia: A needed change  
Chapter three

Jason stood in front of the small sink with the water running and a big swath of paper towels in his giant paws. He had been scrubbing the blood out of his fur for the last few minutes but it wasn't coming out very easily. The smell of it burned his nose and caused a darker part of his mind to stir, but he just ignored it. That part of his mind had always been there. Even when he had been a cub it had been present and always more than willing to take over every chance that it got. But he had learned to control it over time to a degree. It had been a must to learn control as it usually left things in a worse mess after its hunger had been placated. Even so he could feel a rage deep within himself.

But enough of this train of thought; he had other things to worry about. As he scrubbed he realized that not all of the blood would come out. He would have to wait till he took a shower when he got home. Jason turned the water off and threw the wad of paper towels in the trash next to him. He started to walk out but caught a glimpse of something in the mirror. His eyes, they had a very feral look to them, a look that unsettled him somewhat. He realized that he had been close to losing his temper again over the blood not coming off. Looking away he focused on returning back to the E.R’s waiting room. He knew that he didn't have to stay but for some reason he wanted to, if only to make sure the leopard had made it and was okay.

Jason had signed all of the forms that he could and after sitting in one of the hard plastic chairs that seemed to plague all hospitals for what felt like hours a vet came out and stood in front of him. Jason looked the puma in the eyes. “Are you, Jason Strongclaw?” the vet asked.   
“Yes. That's me.” he answered.   
“I have some good news.” The vet said as he clasped his hands together and placed a smile on his face. “The female leopard that you brought in is in stable condition.” Jason breathed a sigh of relief. 

“She suffered a stab wound to her lower abdomen when she was attacked.” The puma continued. “She’s very lucky that you were there to bring her in or she would have bled out in no time.” The vet placed a paw on Jason’s bare shoulder. A gesture that coupled with the good news brought a smile to Jason's muzzle. “Can I go see her?” Jason asked.  
“Sure. She should be awake by now. She's in room 207 and the second floor.” The vet told him. As Jason stood the vet began to walk away but stopped and turned to look at Jason. “You’re that leopard’s hero you know. That was a Courageous thing that you did today.” He then walked away to return to some unfinished duty. 

Jason felt proud to hear those words. He began to head towards the elevator when he noticed the Fox and Bunny he had met this morning. The Two hadn't noticed him yet as they asked the receptionist a question. As he got closer the Fox turned his head towards Jason no doubt smelling the blood that was still in Jason's fur, but if he did he didn't show it mostly because he had on a pair of reflective aviator sunglasses. “Well, look who he have here carrots.” He said to the bunny beside him. She stopped talking and directed her attention to where Nick was indicating. 

Judy's expression went from serious police business to exuberant joy while Nick's face remained indifferent. 

“Oh wow. What are doing here?” Judy’s tone changed as she noticed that he had no shirt on. “Also what happened to your shirt?” She asked blushing slightly. 

“Well...” Jason was interrupted by the antelope behind the reception desk.   
“It was amazing.” She said excited. “He came charging in with the leopard that you just asked for in his arms. He saved her. Wasn't even worried about the blood all over him.” She told the two officers with a kind of dreamy look in her eyes. 

Even Nick was surprised as he let out a low whistle and pulled his glasses down a bit. Judy let out an “Aww.” As she clasped her paws together. Jason blushed just a bit even though you couldn't see it and scratched the back of his head. “That's a noble and brave thing you did.” Judy told him. 

“Thanks.” Jason replied thankful for the praise. “I just couldn't let them beat her up. I'm glad that I was able to get to her as soon as I did. If I hadn't then the two wildebeest would have killed her.” Jason told them. 

“For sure big guy.” Nick said. “You're a hero.” 

“Well I don't know about that.” Jason said trying to play it off. “I just don't like seeing people getting hurt. Especially any females.”

“So are you headed up there to see the leopard?” Judy asked him. 

“Yeah, I wanted to make sure that she is okay before I go home.” Jason answered.

“Brave, noble, and humble.” Nick spoke up. “You my friend have a heart of gold.”

“I will second that.” Judy chimed in. 

“And arm’s like steel beams.” said the antelope still day dreaming. Nick, Judy and Jason looked at her. Judy giggled a bit. 

“Come on there gigantor, let's go and visit this leopard before she jumps ya.” Nick said as him and Judy turned towards the elevator. The antelope’s eyes followed Jason the whole time that he walked with them. And Jason was keenly aware. It didn't make him nervous or embarrassed. On the contrary, he felt flattered. He meet her gaze as the elevator doors began to shut and just for a giggle he shot her a wink which he was sure made her swoon even more.

The elevator dinged and the doors slid open and the three stepped out. Well two stepped out. Judy nearly hopped out. She seemed so joyful and full of energy which really contrasted against her partner Nick; he seemed to take his time with things. Jason wondered how the Fox kept up with that bunny. The receptionist on this floor was a female ox and noticing the police uniforms she pointed them to the right room. Jason just kept quiet and followed along. Soon the three of them were standing outside of the door to room 207. Judy raised a paw and knocked on the door. 

“Miss Curtail. I'm Judy Hopps with the ZPD. May I come in?” 

There was a pause and Judy was going to knock again when the reply came. Nick turned around and looked at Jason. “Wait here for moment big feller. We need to get some info from her and she could get emotional seeing you that is if she remembers you.”   
Jason began to protest but thought better of it so he obliged. Judy went in and Nick slipped in behind her. 

It felt like he had been out in the hallway for an hour before Judy emerged from behind the door. Jason had been leaning against the wall thinking of the leopards beautiful face and eyes and of the attack. He noticed movement and turned his head towards Judy. 

“She's asking for you.” she told him with a smile. “Said she wants to meet her brave tiger.” 

A small grin played across Jason's muzzle with that. “Hey that's her words.” Judy added Noticing his smile. With that Judy returned behind the door and Jason followed. On his left was a bathroom but past that was a small area that was a bit cluttered with a couple chairs and a rolling adjustable table. Jason stepped around the corner and saw the beautiful black leopard speaking to Nick. As he came into full view he stopped at the end of her bed. The leopard turned her attention to him with her emerald eye’s which froze him to the spot. A wide grin covered the leopard's face as she finally got to see her savior. Nick's ears perked in Jason's direction as he detected a scent change in the room. It was miniscule though. “Hi.” The leopard said joyfully. 

“Hi.” Jason replied a little unsure.

“Don't stand all the way over there silly.” she told him. “Come over here and let me give you a   
hug.” she gestured with her arms. Jason hesitated for a second then walked over to the left side   
of her bed. He Bent his huge form over and wrapped his arms around her lightly. She returned the hug bit with more gusto. She hugged him deeply and kissed him on his left cheek. “Thank you for saving my life.” She said as a sob had begun to rack her body. Jason was afraid that his height was making her hug cause her pain so he kneeled Down onto his knees. She began to cry harder and wasn't letting go of him but Jason didn't mind. It felt good with her in his arms and even though she was grief stricken and had been stabbed she smelt great to him. “I thought I was going to die.” she said as she sobbed. “They wouldn't leave me alone. I told them that I hadn't meant to bump into them but they wouldn't listen. They took all of my money and my phone. But then you came along.” She breathed in deeply to continue, still crying all the while. “I saw you pounce on the one that stabbed me then you defended me as if I was someone special to you.” 

Jason rubbed her back as she cried into his shoulder visualizing the incident all over again. Judy had become a bit teary eyed at the moving display. Nick seemed indifferent once again as if the situation made him uncomfortable. “Then that roar that you let loose on the two of them sounded so savage that I was sure that you planned on killing them.” 

He had planned on killing them. But he had been stopped. Jason had been silent the whole time as the leopard had said what she needed to say but at this he spoke up. “I was going to kill them.” he paused and the two broke the hug. Jason looked the leopard in the eyes. “But you stopped me when you grabbed my arm.” He said it so matter of factly that it took them all by surprise. The leopard looked at him with what looked like love in her eyes. The Two hugged one last time then she laid back down wincing as she did. 

Jason stood back up but didn't leave the bedside. Something that garnered a look from both Nick and Judy. Jason looked down and said. “My name Is Jason Strongclaw.”

The leopard hadn't stopped looking at him. “My name Is Elizabeth Curtail. But everyone calls me Ellie.” She told him and offered her hand which he took in his and kissed. This elicited a giggle from Ellie.

Judy let out another “Aww.” As Nick rolled his eyes. As far as Jason was concerned, this was the best part of the day.


	4. Chapter 4

Zootopia: A needed change  
Chapter four

Jason’s day had taken a turn for the better what with having saved a beautiful Leopard. Then meeting said leopard and causing her to giggle by just kissing the back of her paw, but now he was coming back to reality. Jason looked at his smart phone and noticed that it was half past noon and he had not finished his route, which would not go over well with his boss. He really didn’t like his boss who was a mean, old, and grizzled Deer so it didn’t bother him much.  
Jason turned his head to say goodbye to Ellie but was interrupted by the door to the room being slammed open as a small spotted leopard girl came barreling in shouting “Mommy!”  
This surprised the whole room, even Nick and Judy who had been watching in peaceful silence. The small girl leapt onto the bed and into Ellie’s lap causing her mother to wince in response. All the while shouting. “Mommy!”

Ellie laughed through the pain but the small girl could see the discomfort on her mother’s face.  
“What’s wrong mommy?” she asked.

Ellie grabbed her and wrapped her in a hug. “Just a little hurt honey, that’s all.” Ellie ended the hug and sat the girl on her lap as Jason watched the touching display and felt a warm feeling come over him. He had always loved kids and someday hoped to have some of his own, especially a daughter. 

Before Ellie could introduce her to the group another mammal knocked then entered the room. The pig that came in had a tuft of blonde hair that fell over her eyes slightly. Her ears were floppy and she had a beautiful smile. “Sorry.” She said winded. “She got away from me when we exited the elevator.” Her demeanor cheerful and calm. She smoothed out her blue dress as she caught her breath. 

“Yeah she tends to do that.” Ellie said with a grin. “Thanks for bringing her to me Jackie. I really appreciate it.”

“Not a problem.” the pig replied. “Well, now that I know you're okay and since the room is sort of crowded I guess I'll go now.”

“Are you sure?” Ellie asked. “Stay for a minute.”

“Yeah. I have a few errands to run so I'm going to go and take care of them.” The pig answered. “I'll call you later.” she told Ellie as she turned to leave the room giving Jason a wink before she left.

“Bye Miss Jackie!” the little girl yelled excitedly while waving. The pig waved back as the door closed behind her.   
Attention then turned back to the small leopard girl. “Everyone this is my daughter Susan.” Ellie told them but quickly added. “She likes to be called Susie though.” 

“Mommy, who’s this?” Susie asked as she pointed to Jason. 

“That is Jason, honey. He saved me today.” Ellie told her.

Jason bent down to say hello to the small girl but was surprised when two strong arms wrapped around his neck. He stood straight as Susie hugged him as hard as she could, and after a moment he returned the hug and reveled in the feeling. It was warm and full of love and it seemed to bring him an ease of mind. 

“Susie dear, don’t strangle him” Ellie told her laughing. Susie obeyed and released her hold on Jason placing a small kiss on his muzzle and saying thank you before he grabbed her and set her down. The display of affection brought another “Aww.” from Judy. Nick was now engrossed in his smart phone.

“Well I hate to interrupt this moment but me and officer carrots here really have to be getting back to our patrol.” Nick said now looking up from his phone. “Miss Curtail we will be getting back to you as soon as we hear anything on those wildebeest’s that attacked you. As for you big guy.” He said as he pointed at Jason. “I and officer Hopps need to speak with you about this case.”   
“That’s right. You are the only one we haven’t spoken to yet.” Judy added. “Me and Nick will step out into the hallway and give you some time to say goodbye.” She told Jason. 

Jason watched the two leave the room in silence. With those two gone he started to feel slightly nervous. The room was quiet for a long minute or two before Ellie spoke up. “Jason, thank you for today. I mean that from the bottom of my heart.” She said while stroking Susie’s fur. “If you hadn’t intervened then I would be dead right now and Susie here would have been an orphan.” She grabbed his massive right paw and squeezed it. 

Jason looked at his paw for a moment. “You are more than welcome Ellie. I am just glad that I was there at the right moment.” Jason replied placing his left paw over his right one. He looked into her emerald eyes for a moment then said. “I must go now. I wish you a speedy recovery and good health.” 

Ellie let his paw go looking somewhat let down and turned her attention to Susie who was still sitting in her mother’s lap seemingly trying to gauge the two of them. “It was a pleasure to meet you two.” Jason said seeing the expression on Ellie’s face. With that she looked up and replied smiling. “The pleasure was all mine.” 

Jason could tell the smile had been forced to an extent but he didn’t say anything. Waving goodbye he left the room with a strange feeling inside. A feeling that he had never had and one that would be sure to drive him crazy if he let it.

Once out in the hallway he found Judy and Nick waiting for him by the elevator. He walked over to the two officers, ready for their questions. “Ah here he is carrots.” Nick said gesturing toward Jason. 

“Yep! Here I am.” Jason retorted. 

“So tell us Jason.” Judy began. “How do you know that leopard?”

“I don’t know her. Never met her before, until today.” Jason answered. He watched as Judy wrote something down on a pad of paper. 

“Well then tell us what happened.” Nick spoke before Judy could. Nick smiled as she glared at him. 

Jason recounted all that had happened after he had left them that morning. How he had seen the wildebeests attacking Ellie and the actions that he had taken to stop them. Even though he was sure that they had heard him tell Ellie that he had planned on chasing them down and killing them the two officers said nothing about it. With the retelling of the events from his point of view the three of them bid each other goodbye.

As he stepped outside and into the warm sun he checked his phone and saw that it was just after one. Nearly quitting time and he had spent the entire day at a hospital for some animal he didn’t even know. He thought to himself that he would do it all over again if he got the chance. 

As Jason started for the parking lot to find his co-worker he was cut off by a white limousine pulling in his path. The windows were mirrored and he could see his reflection in them as it rolled to a stop.   
The window before him lowered just a bit to reveal the face of a polar bear with dark circles around his eyes. “Get in the limo.” The polar bear said as two more came around the vehicle one grabbing the handle and opening door for Jason as the other one reached into his jacket. Confused, Jason looked at the two bears, reading their stern expressions and noticing the black handle of a firearm he realized that he didn’t have a choice, but he still wanted to know why. 

“Why?” Jason asked. 

The Bear in the car had been expecting this question. “Mr. Big wishes to speak with you.” He told the tiger with a crisp look in his eye. “Now please enter the limo. You have my word that you will not be harmed.”  
Jason chuckled at that last word. He couldn’t help it. Pushing that aside as the look it had garnered wasn’t a kind one he entered the vehicle. The door shut behind him and he instantly noticed the chill in the car which made him glad that he was of Siberian descent. The cold had never bothered him much. The two other bears got in, one up front and the other directly across from him.

“Do not worry about your co-worker.” Said the bigger of the two, which was the one that had told him to get in. “He was sent on his way.” The big one waved a ring covered paw as he said this. Jason didn’t like the sound of that and asked where Bob was.

“Like I said, He was sent home. Do not worry tiger. He wasn’t killed.” The Big bear told him. “And before you say something about getting back to your job just know that we have spoken to your boss and he wished us to tell you that you’re fired.” 

Jason frowned at the news. He had been sure that his actions today would have landed him in hot water but hopefully with a slap on the wrists. He did have to pay rent after all.

Jason looked out of the window as they started moving but was interrupted by the smaller polar bear handing him a black cloth bag. “Put this on, now.” The bear told him. 

Jason stared at him defiantly. “No.”

The bear seemed insulted. “Put it on or I will do it for you.”

“I would love to see you try.” Jason told him with a lip curling growl.

“Easy now Dimitri.” The big one said. “He is our guest. He doesn’t have to wear the cloth if he doesn’t wish to.” 

Jason stared at the one named Dimitri as he put the cloth back into his pocket. Dimitri returned the stare with a small smirk which made Jason want to tear his throat out. Suppressing the urge he asked the bigger bear where they were taking him but was only met with silence. He didn’t like this situation but also realized that he was along for the ride and he couldn’t stop it so Jason sat back in the seat with his arms crossed and his tail moving to and fro in an agitated state. The darker side of his mind on high alert and ready to pounce but kept in check. Maybe this meeting with this Mr. Big would pay off for him now that he didn’t have any employment. Or maybe it would lead to trouble, only time would tell. He did know that he would soon find out.


End file.
